Wakanda Forever's Tenoch Huerta Mejía Nicknamed Namor's Costume The 'Shame Shorts'
"Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" pulled out all the stops as it brought the fourth phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe to an end. It has action and family drama and reminds audiences of the lasting impact of King T'Challa himself, Chadwick Boseman. Not to mention, it introduces one of Marvel Comics' oldest characters, Namor the Sub-Mariner, as brought to life by Tenoch Huerta Mejía. As the leader of the incredibly powerful underwater kingdom Talokan, he's prepared to conjure up a preemptive war with the surface world if it means keeping his people safe from outside invasion.
While, in some ways, the MCU's version of Namor is a significant departure from the source material, in others, "Wakanda Forever" is very faithful to what came before. For instance, he reveals to Shuri (Letitia Wright) that he's a mutant, just as he is on the pages of Marvel Comics. He also has pointy ears and wings on his ankles, just like the Namor Marvel fans have read about for decades. Additionally, the silver screen Namor even dresses similarly to his comic book counterpart — right down to the lack of shoes, gold and black color motif, and, of course, his swim trunks.
Though they're accurate to Namor's look in Marvel Comics, Tenoch Huerta Mejía referred to his character's trunks as "shame shorts." Here's why he gave them this unflattering nickname.
Namor's short shorts made Mejía a bit uncomfortable
Variety got to speak with Tenoch Huerta Mejía on November 15, 2022, shortly after the premiere of "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" in cinemas. During the chat, he discussed the role of Namor and how he felt about playing such an iconic Marvel character in the sprawling MCU — more specifically if he was chilly at any point while filming. After all, Namor doesn't wear much in terms of clothing, so for the entirety of his portion of the shoot, Mejía had to work with much of his skin exposed. He explained that while he never got too cold, he did experience some discomfort with the "shame shorts."
As he recalled, the shorts were a tad on the short side for his comfort, hence why he gave them such a nickname. When Alex Livinalli and Mabel Cadena — the actors behind Talokan warriors Attuma and Namora, respectively — were asked about Mejía's "shame shorts," they couldn't help but laugh. Although, Livinalli confessed that his rather revealing Attuma costume did leave him feeling a bit cold and exposed throughout filming. However, in hindsight, he now sees the uncomfortable experience as a source of pride. "Seeing the film, you can't even tell that we're freezing," he said.
Would Tenoch Huerta Mejía wear Namor's revealing costume again?
For a lesser actor, an odd costume may be a reason to leave a role behind for good. You simply can't put a price on physical comfort, especially in front of a camera lens. In the case of Tenoch Huerta Mejía, though, he's not quite done with Namor and his rather uncomfortably revealing outfit. In fact, he's hopeful that someday he'll get the chance to return to the role in the MCU — ideally in a solo project all his own. "I would like it, but I don't know," he told Digital Spy in an interview, voicing his interest in Namor becoming the lead of his own MCU movie.
Of course, Mejía is well aware that the ability to greenlight a Namor project is far beyond his control. He says, "It depends on what Kevin Feige says he wants. It depends on the inbox. It depends on the people and how many tickets they buy. So please buy lots of tickets." With that in mind, if you're a fan of Namor in the MCU, going out and supporting "Wakanda Forever" is the best thing you can do if you think he deserves a solo movie. Maybe if he returns in such a production, he'll get to take on some of Namor's many other costumes from his extensive Marvel Comics history.
"Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" is now playing in theaters everywhere.